1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a device connector.
2. Description of the Related Art
U.S. Pat. No. 7,572,150 discloses a device connector to be connected to a device, such as a motor installed in an electric vehicle or a hybrid vehicle. This device connector includes metal busbars for connecting device-side terminals in the device and wire-side terminals on power feeding wires. The busbars are bent into complicated shapes and are arranged side by side. A molded resin portion is formed around the busbars by insert molding. A demolding structure for the molded resin portion is complicated and suitable boring cannot be performed on the molded resin portion. Thus, voids or small clearances may be produced in a thick part of the molded resin, and cracks may be formed due to the voids in the molded resin. The cracks may reduce the waterproof property of the device connector. To suppress the formation of voids in the molded resin, thought has been given to forming a primary molded article by primary molding to cover parts of the respective busbars by a primary molded synthetic resin portion, setting the primary molded article in a secondary molding die and forming the molded resin portion by further covering the primary molded portion by a secondary molded portion.
The amount of shrinkage of the secondary molded portion covering the primary molded portion in a cooling process is obtained by multiplying the length of the secondary molded portion covering a straight part of the primary molded portion by a linear expansion coefficient of molding resin. Thus, if the straight part of the primary molded portion is made longer, the amount of shrinkage of the secondary molded portion covering this straight part also increases. Therefore, the primary molded portion may be squashed by the secondary molded portion when secondary molding resin is cooled and solidified.
The present invention was completed in view of the above situation and an object thereof is to suppress the formation of voids and cracks in a molded resin portion.